Springfield daily republic. [volume] (Springfield, O. [Ohio]) 1887-1888, 1887-08-27

IGt wncn / ;bougns OF Eraspins my rlns
and sighting II the eNertion required dis.
couraged me.
The lion was the bolder of the two.
After making up his mind that could
not harm him. he held his head well up,
swung his tail about, and advanced at
Q slow pace l was under cover, and
he might have suspected u trap. But for
this he would probably have made a rush.
The tiger displayed exactly the same
characteristics rs a cat creeping upon her
prey. lie crept, crawled. twisted about,
and sought to shelter his body behind the
slightest tuft Of grass. He did not, how
ever, take his eyes off me for the tenth Of
Q second. and the nearer he came the
more his great lips parted To show his
yellow teeth. He was as supple as a
snake, and nothing could be more grace
ful than his movements. l could see his
tremendous muscles quiver as he moved,
and remember Of thinking what power
he must have in his legs. Ii was all Of ten
minutes before the beasts approached the
point where they realized each others
presence. You would have thought, with
only wall separating them, that they
must have heard or scented each other.
The fact that they did not was probably
owing to the excitement under which
they labored.
BY and by the lion was almost at tho
end Of the wall, and near enough for his
spring. He crouched down, switched his
tail in menacing way, and plainly saw
his talons dig into the earth us he gathered
his muscles for great effort. While
there was a settled determination on lis
part TO make food Of me, there was a
certain trepidation in his general de-
meanor. II was plain that be was mysti
fled, but his ferocious nature prevailed.
The tiger kept abreast Of the lion, and
he was the first 10 take the alarm He
evidently scented the lion, for he reared
up, snuffed the air, and then flung out a
paw and spat like an angry cat. This
noise startled the lion. and he rose up,
showed his teeth and took his eyes of me
for the first time. Either animal could
easily have leaped the wall but neither
attempted it. The tiger took on fiercer
look and dropped some of his stealth, but
the lion reached the end Of the wall first,
uttering roar OF defiance and evidently
expecting TO meet an enemy. The tiger
was four or five feet from the end of the
wall, and the move he made WIS 80 quick
that my eyes could not follow it. As the
lions head showed around the wall the
big cat made lightning spring and the
next instant the two were rolling over
and over at my feet, fighting As only such
beasts can fight, and growing IN man
ner to make my hair turn gray. II was
then that strength came back to me. and
! rose up. but instead of rushing away l
ran back into the building. Reaching the
rear wall l stood there prisoner and a
spectator The first clinch lasted about
three minutes, and WAS characterized
by such ferocity as cannot de-
scribe. While the lion and the tiger
are probably natural enemies. suppose
the fact that both had planned to make
meat Of me, and both felt themselves dis
appointed aroused all their ferocity. Most
Of the time during the first clinch they
were rolling over and over like q big ball,
tearing, biting and growing. and the
movements Of the tiger were much the
quickest. They finally separated, each
backed OF a few feet and each stood broad
side to me. could see half dozen blood
stains on the lions side. while the tiger
had been terribly bitten about the neck,
and there was q bloody scratch on his
quarter. They faced each other for about
. minute, the lion roaring in q deep bass
and the tiger snarling like an enraged cat
Then, rs swift as a flash OF lightning, the
tiger bounded through space and alighted
on the lions back. ana again they rolled
and tumbled about. The fight was too
fierce to he kept up long, and too deter
mined not to result in severe injuries
When the beasts finally struggled to
their feet the tiger had hold of the lion
just back Of the fore shoulder, and he
hung there and worried the king as dog
would a sheep. Twice the lion yelped out
as II he had lost his courage but he sud
denly made a grand exertion. broke the
tigers hold and then turned and caught
him by the neck. l thought all was over
with the cat The lion actually lifted him
clear Of the ground and shook him, and
this time the tiger whined. After a bit,
however, he twisted his body around until
his hind claws came into play, and then
the lion had to let go. There WAS another
rest for a minute or so, and again the tiger
was the aggressive party. This time they
fought more like dogs, neither seeming
sble to down the other, and they kept |
working away from the building toward |
the creek. l advanced as they retreated, |
and they were still doing their best to |
destroy each other when they rolled of |
the bank into the creek. Each was COW
med with blood from nose to tail, and the |
Injuries inflicted must have been serious.
The tumble into the water separated them, |
and while the tiger reached the opposite |
bank at one spot. the lion crawled out at |
mother thirty feet away, and both limped |
into the forest without the slightest desire |
~ renew the fight New York Sun.